Shangri-La Frontier

Episode 10

Now that we're almost halfway through the season, we need a definitive, climactic note. The past few episodes could be considered training and world-building, but we could've cut right to this episode a while ago without losing much. I wonder if the writers were trying to tie some narrative beat about Sunraku trying to overcome challenges alone or if his battle with the spider boss is just a flex. Either way, it was weird despite being incredibly well-animated.

Arthur is finally following up on all the foreshadowing she laid out before and wants to recruit Sunraku to help her take on a unique encounter. She's also requesting Katzo's help, the character that Sunraku talks to frequently and fights in other games. It turns out they were a pro gamer and their avatar matches the other female character in the opening. I wasn't expecting them to tie into the main cast since their passive inclusion screamed "background character," but it's nice that everything is getting sorted out by the end.

Sunraku's unique encounter at the show's beginning acted as the inciting incident for almost everything he's had to deal with. I don't think our protagonists will win this upcoming fight, but we're also being kept in the dark about why they are going after this new creature. Without a doubt, Arthur is hiding something. The way this episode ends is interesting, but it wouldn't be surprising if it doesn't amount to much. When players die in this game, they respawn like every other video game, but NPCs don't. I guess that makes sense to an extent, but it also makes me wonder how much of a consequence it will have. There have been a lot of hints that the AI in this game is a lot more sophisticated than that of other games. Given their actions and behavior patterns, I won't be surprised if the twist is that they are sentient. Will there be a dramatic reveal that ties all of these elements together? That will be the big question I'll ask myself for the next few episodes.

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Shangri-La Frontier is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.